Following are excerpts of speeches from the interventions made by Rajya Sabha MP Kartikeya Sharma in Parliament
ON THE INDIAN ECONOMY
Sir, from inheriting an Indian economy, which was slipping southwards to being painted as the global bright spot, with the Indian economy registering the fastest growth rate among large economies for two successful fiscals and in the course for the third time in financial year ’24 is a stellar achievement of the Modi government that invites deep analysis.
The journey of Indian economy was steered clear through the phases of global slowdown in 2019, COVID lockdowns, commodity price, steep escalation due to the war in Ukraine and global tensions and tightening of global financial conditions.
India’s economy has been the fastest growing among the world’s 20 largest economies for the seven of the past nine years. And those were only the seven years in the past 76 years that India has achieved this distinction.
India’s US$3.3 trillion GDP overtook that of the UK in the fiscal year ending March 31 2022, making it the fifth largest economy in the world. The Indian economy, according to the IMF estimates will emerge as the world’s third largest economy by 2027.
Hopping over Japan and Germany, as its GDP crosses US$5 trillion by 2047, India aspires to be a developed economy under the visionary leadership of the honourable Prime Minister Modi…
Sir, we have achieved success in improving our GDP from $2.3 trillion in 2014 to $3.75 trillion now. On the ground, in 2013-14, our per capita income was Rs 68,000, which has now increased to Rs 1 lakh 80,000 in 2022-23. In 2014, the capital expenditure was Rs 3.9 lakh crores, and The Union government under the leadership of Prime Minister has increased it to Rs 10 lakh crores by 2023… The Union Government has increased the allocation to the states under the various schemes from Rs 30 lakh crores during 2004-14 to about Rs 100 lakh crores in the nine years from 2014-2023. Between 2004 and 2014, tax collection was Rs 90 lakh crores, which has now increased to Rs 70 lakh crores, in the nine years from 2014 to 2023. GST collection has reached Rs 1.87 lakh crores in April 2023 and monthly average GST collection is Rs 1.69 lakh crores. Our foreign exchange reserves were $79 billion. Today it stands at $593 billion.
ON TWO J&K BILLS
Honourable Chairman Sir, I rise in the favour of these two bills, the Jammu and Kashmir Reservation and the Organization Amendment Bill… The passage of this bill shall undo the injustice that has been done to the people of Jammu and Kashmir.
Those who oppose this bill should understand what people of this country want…
It was the year 2022. I was at Lal Chowk at Srinagar, the infamous Lal Chowk, which was once the town halls of terrorism. It was a place that remained heavily guarded and that peace and freedom unheard of.
I happened to be at that place and had the pleasure of hosting the first ever live television debate from Lal Chowk.
And when I was doing that show, Sir, I saw Tiranga everywhere and I was compelled to think of our honourable Prime Minister when he undertook the Ekta Yatra in 1991 and hoisted the Tricolour at Lal Chowk at a time when it was unimaginable to hoist even a single Tiranga, let alone a rally.
Sir, I remember I was 10 years old, and it left an imprint in my mind which still stays with me today. So the place has become completely reformed by 2022. It has become a place of calm positivity and vigour. Today there is peace, people can easily go in hundreds and thousands.
Jammu Kashmir has broken various records in the field of tourism after decades. So last year, the Union Territory welcomed 1.88 crore tourists, and this year it is set to cross two crore tourists this year.
The Festival of democracy is being celebrated in Jammu Kashmir, from a time when Tiranga was not visible. Today, almost every household fearlessly hoists the Tiranga, celebrating “ek desh, ek samvidhan, ek jhanda, har ghar Tiranga”.
So as for the data available, there are currently 46,517 families having 1,58,976 persons registered with the relief organisation of the government of Jammu and Kashmir—who have got registered over a period of last three decades.
Sir, while we talk of the rights and justice for the people of Jammu and Kashmir, we must think of it as social, political and economic rights. The original Reorganisation Act is proposed to be amended with a view to provide representation to Kashmiri migrants displaced persons from Pakistan Occupied Jammu and Kashmir and Scheduled Tribes in the Legislative Assembly of the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir, so as to preserve their political rights as well as for their overall social and economic development.
Sir, the Reservation Amendment Bill proposes to change the nomenclature of weak and underprivileged social class to Other Backward Classes, which is a wider, Constitutionally valid and more empowering definition.
So the abrogation of 370 has spurred unprecedented economic growth in the valley. Travel and tourism have picked up thanks to the environment of peace and prosperity that has been made possible by the Modi government.
Local businesses and industries have started to thrive again, with the ease of doing business measures undertaken. Multiple large corporations are now looking to set up their offices in Jammu and Kashmir…
Sir, from the hosting of the G20 meetings to the social sector, which is also thriving with open, fearless and productive public interactions, education, and health care is finding itself in the middle of policy implementation with multiple youth-centric initiatives being taken…
So the youth of Kashmir is no different from the youth of the rest of the country. They want opportunities, they want education, they want growth, they want prosperity.
This bill seeks to undo the political injustice and ushering an era of new energy and representation for the people of Jammu and Kashmir equitably. No speech about Kashmir is complete without the famous couplet by Amir Khusrow, “Agar firdaus bar roo-e zameen ast, Hameen ast-o hameen ast-o hameen ast.” “If there is paradise on earth, it is this, it is this, it is this.”
Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi and honourable Home Minister, are committed to restore the region of Jammu and Kashmir back to its rightful title of firdaus. And hence, I support the bill.
As today the honourable Supreme Court has ratified the decision bringing an end to any criticism dissent that has been made out to this bill. So I support this bill and I urge all members to heartily welcome this initiative. Thank you.
ON RARE AND GENETIC DISEASES
Thank You, Sir, for allowing me to raise this very important issue of public importance.
Sir, India is a large country with over 140 crore population. As a result the cases of rare and genetic disorders is also huge. As per government estimates, about 72 to 96 million Indians suffer from about 6000 different rare or genetic diseases in the country.
These include diseases like Sickle Cell anemia, Spinal Muscular Atrophy, Down Syndrome, Cystic Fibrosis, etc. The field of rare diseases is complex and heterogeneous.
The landscape of rare diseases is constantly changing, as there are new rare diseases and conditions being Identified and reported regularly in medical literature.
There are primarily three challenges: 1) Challenges related to diagnosis: There is a lack of awareness about rare diseases in general public as well as in the medical fraternity. Since most of the case load is in tier 2, 3 and 4 cities and towns, they remain undetected and undiagnosed. In addition, two to three misdiagnoses are typical before arriving at a final diagnosis which causes delay and further suffering.
2) Challenges related to treatment: Despite progress in recent years, effective or safe treatment is not available for most of the rare diseases. The other critical factor is the prohibitive cost of treatment. For the rare diseases called Spinal Muscular Atrophy, the treatment involves a drug called ‘zolgensma’ which costs a whopping Rs 18 crore. Drugs like Nitisinone are used for the treatment of Tyrosinemia Type 1 and costs more than 3 crore per annum. The issue was also raised by Shri Vivek Tankha couple of years ago and the government later exempted the drug from any import duty. Recently, government has given permission for manufacturing of four out of the eight types of generic drugs for the treatment of rare genetic diseases such as Tyrosinemia Type, Gaucher’s Disease, Wilson’s Disease etc. 2 mg tablet that costs 5 lac from Sweden will be available 6500 in India. The drug Eliglustat that costs more than 3 crore a year shall now cost about 5 lakh. And so is the case with other drugs. This is a welcome and a much needed move.
3) The third challenge is Prevention & Control of Rare Diseases The prevention of genetic disorders can be done at multiple levels. • buildthecapacityofhealth professionals and increase awareness in the population at large • preventingtheoccurrence of the disease, i.e., preventing two carriers from reproducing • prenatal screening and prenatal diagnosis • newborn screening • better care and medical rehabilitation to the patients
Although the government is doing its best, I would like to make three suggestions: 1) Data: Gather more and more epidemiological data on how many people are suffering from which rare and genetic disorder, prevalence and burden of diseases, patterns and trend analysis and align policy measures to it
2) Patient care: Provide financial help to those suffering, provide them treatment, rehabilitation and counselling so that better disease management can be ensured. Have a corpus fund and create simple mechanisms for patients and hospitals to apply
3) Ecosystem: Enhance diagnostics, train caregivers, promote awareness, create national campaigns, setup manufacturing facility for production of these generic drugs in India, negotiate with patent holders for bulk deals, etc. so that the future case load may reduce and maybe treated more effectively.